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Oil advice for Katana 750

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  • Oil advice for Katana 750

    Does anyone have an opinion on what is a good oil to run in the Katana? I've seen some articles but I prefer someone who has used the oil on a Katana...if there is any difference...
    I love the smell of gas and asphalt in da mornin'

  • #2
    i'm running castrol gps semi-synthetic. 10w-40 in the winter, 20w-50 in the summer. it made such a difference in the performance of the bike and the clutch over whatever the guy before me used.

    Long Live the D

    Comment


    • #3
      There are many types of oil and you'll get a different response from everyone. However, as a general guideline, I recommend the following oil characteristics:

      - JASO-MA Certified and API SG
      - A 10W40 rating
      - Synthetic or Semi-synthetic if you ride hard

      Other than that, just change the oil at the required intervals and you'll be fine. Personally, I use Castrol Grand Prix but you can use other oils such as...

      - Mobil 1 MX4T
      - AMSOil AMF 10W40
      - Castrol GPS
      - Castrol Act-evo
      - Motul 300V Sport
      - Valvoline 4-Stroke

      I hope this helps.
      "The secret to life is to keep your mind full and your bowels empty. Unfortunately, the converse is true for most people."

      Comment


      • #4
        I feel like there's an echo in here... (good job, Kat-a-tonic!)

        I too run the Castrol GPS 10w40 in cooler weather and 20w50 through the peak of the summer (mixing the two in the spring & fall as the Florida heat dictates). Oh, and ParadoxMD, it's a full synthetic these days (has been for a couple years now).

        -----------
        A cool read:
        Castrol tested their newly revised R4 race oil for 100 hours on a brand new CBR600RR (12,600 miles before the first oil change)..

        The latest issue of Bike [UK] has a nice write up on their testing robot, which automatically learns any bike when attached to it (including the shift pattern, clutch points, etc).

        The UK will be offering R4 variants in other weights than 5w40. I don't know if the US will also be offering the change, but I do have a request in to find out.

        Cheers,
        =-= The CyberPoet
        Remember The CyberPoet

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by The CyberPoet
          Oh, and ParadoxMD, it's a full synthetic these days (has been for a couple years now).
          even better.

          Long Live the D

          Comment


          • #6
            I'm runnin Amsoil full synthetic 10-40. I haven't noticed any changes in performance from the non synthetic 10-40.
            Gripp & Regripp

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by Gripp
              I'm runnin Amsoil full synthetic 10-40. I haven't noticed any changes in performance from the non synthetic 10-40.
              If you want a performance benefit, try running Castrol R4 just once... you'll feel the difference in the seat of your pants...

              Cheers,
              =-= The CyberPoet
              Remember The CyberPoet

              Comment


              • #8
                I found a huge difference in performance after switching from Castrol Actevo to Mobil 1 MX4T.

                I now find myself looking at the site glass and am amazed that the oil still looks light brown (the Actevo got pretty dark after about 200 miles or so).

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by FloridaKat
                  I found a huge difference in performance after switching from Castrol Actevo to Mobil 1 MX4T.

                  I now find myself looking at the site glass and am amazed that the oil still looks light brown (the Actevo got pretty dark after about 200 miles or so).
                  I suspect this may also have to do with the fact that we left the drain open for a long, long time (hours?) and drained the cooler as well...

                  Cheers,
                  =-= The CyberPoet
                  Remember The CyberPoet

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by The CyberPoet
                    Originally posted by FloridaKat
                    I found a huge difference in performance after switching from Castrol Actevo to Mobil 1 MX4T.

                    I now find myself looking at the site glass and am amazed that the oil still looks light brown (the Actevo got pretty dark after about 200 miles or so).
                    I suspect this may also have to do with the fact that we left the drain open for a long, long time (hours?) and drained the cooler as well...

                    Cheers,
                    =-= The CyberPoet
                    I changed the oil the day after we did the valve adjustment, but agree the cooler was probably laced with dirty oil. I did leave the drain open for about 1/2 hour. The next time, I'm definitely going to look at cleaning the metal shavings and screen in the oil pan (thanks for the great advice!).

                    The biggest difference I've noticed with the oil change is with shifting; I'm finding it easier to shift in all gears, especially from 1st to 2nd. Wierd huh?

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by FloridaKat
                      The biggest difference I've noticed with the oil change is with shifting; I'm finding it easier to shift in all gears, especially from 1st to 2nd. Wierd huh?
                      Not really. Much better formulation and as a result you can tell. Like I've said before, if you really want a kick in the butt, try running Castrol R4 for a short while

                      Cheers,
                      =-= The CyberPoet
                      Remember The CyberPoet

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Kat-A-Tonic
                        There are many types of oil and you'll get a different response from everyone. However, as a general guideline, I recommend the following oil characteristics:

                        - JASO-MA Certified and API SG
                        - A 10W40 rating
                        - Synthetic or Semi-synthetic if you ride hard

                        Other than that, just change the oil at the required intervals and you'll be fine. Personally, I use Castrol Grand Prix but you can use other oils such as...

                        - Mobil 1 MX4T
                        - AMSOil AMF 10W40
                        - Castrol GPS
                        - Castrol Act-evo
                        - Motul 300V Sport
                        - Valvoline 4-Stroke

                        I hope this helps.
                        Ok....IMO I'm due for another oil change (~3K miles), but here's an interesting dilemna.

                        My local Wallywallbanger (a.k.a. Wal-Mart), has stopped carrying Mobil 1 MX4T. For my last oil change, I bought enough quarts to do the job and have an unopened quart, plus a partially used quart (10W40). My local stealership doesn't carry (and can't order) the Mobil 1 MX4T, but has Castrol GPS and Act-evo.

                        I'm not a big fan of Act-evo and would prefer to use synthetic again, but is there an issue with mixing two different brand synthetics assuming I use the same oil weight? What about mixing synthetic brands with different oil weights?

                        I'm thinking of using my 1.5 quarts of Mobil 1 MX4T and purchasing the Castrol GPS (3 quarts @ $7.99/ea.).

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Any API-rated oil will mix & co-mingle with any other API-rated oil with no problems by definition (API requirement). Thus, you will have zero issues mixing those two, and I've done it in the past (with those two particular oils) as well.

                          Cheers,
                          =-= The CyberPoet
                          Remember The CyberPoet

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by The CyberPoet
                            Any API-rated oil will mix & co-mingle with any other API-rated oil with no problems by definition (API requirement). Thus, you will have zero issues mixing those two, and I've done it in the past (with those two particular oils) as well.

                            Cheers,
                            =-= The CyberPoet
                            That's what I thought, but I always wondered why the API has the ability to qualify a non-petroleum based oil?

                            Synthetic motor oil is often synthesized from reactants (feedstocks) derived from petroleum, but the compounds in the synthetic motor oil have different molecular structures from those originally in petroleum.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by FloridaKat
                              That's what I thought, but I always wondered why the API has the ability to qualify a non-petroleum based oil?

                              Synthetic motor oil is often synthesized from reactants (feedstocks) derived from petroleum, but the compounds in the synthetic motor oil have different molecular structures from those originally in petroleum.
                              Because they control the use of their API identity logo -- and thus they can force complaince with standards for use of that logo on products (just like JASO and the JASO-MA standard). In the case of the API, they are serving multiple "masters", including the government's will, the industry's reps and the general consumer public -- and ensuring that any motor oil can combine with any other motor oil is in the interest of at least two of those parties (the public and the industry reps).

                              Think about this: would you buy any motor oil that had neither the API nor JASO-MA logo on it for use in any of your vehicles?

                              Cheers,
                              =-= The CyberPoet
                              Remember The CyberPoet

                              Comment

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